Automatic fire-extinguisher



(No Model.)

J. BUEL.

AUTOMATIC FIRE EXTINGUISHER.

Patented Oct. 27 1885.

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JAMES BUEL, OF \VOBUBN, MASSACHUSETTS.

AUTOMATIC Fl-RE-EXTINGUISHER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 329,360, dated October27, 1885.

Application filed April 20, 1885. Serial No. 162,980.

. To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMES BUEL, of We burn, Middlesex county, State ofMassachusetts, have invented Improvements in AutomaticFire-Extinguishers, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to that class of fire-extinguishers in which thefluid-discharge opening or sprinkler is held closed by movably-attachedlevers secured together by a cord or substance that is combustible, orby an alloy or compound that will rupture or fuse in the heat of a fire.

In this class of fire-extinguishers as heretofore used the movablelevers are pivoted or suspended back of the outlet orsprinkler,and inthose in which a spreader is employed the spreader is attached to andmovable with the valve'stem.

In the form of fire-extinguisher which Ihave devised a discharge-openingis held normally closed by levers in such relation to the other parts ofthe extinguisher as to admit of the employment of a spreader rigidlysecured in front of the discharge-opening with obvious advantages overthe use ofa movable spreader; or, if desired, a spreader can beused'that is movable when the parts forming the valve and valve-stem arereleased by heat, and when such movable spreader is used it will beguided in a more certain and satisfactory manner in the form ofextinguisher devised by me than in those forms heretofore used.

In the form of fire-extinguisher devised by me the fluid-dischargeopening is not obstructed by a rose-head, by a valvestem, or otherwise,but is an unobstructed and graduallytapering nozzle that will deliverthe water upon the spreader in front of the outlet a with the bestpossible effect. This form of extinguishing device is adapted to be usedpendent or in the position the reverse of pendent. \Vhen used in theposition the reverse of pendent, the water can be excluded from thesystem and the extinguisher devices will be completely dripped, andthere will be no water left in them to be frozen. NVhen, however, theyare used pendent,any water remaining in the nozzles of theextinguishers,on account of the taper of the nozzle and the absence ofany obstruction therein, will become detached from (No model.)

the interior of the nozzle as it freezes in an obvious manner, and thedevice will not be burst, as would occur if the water did not wedgeitself loose as it freezes.

My invention consists, primarily, of a fireextinguishing device having afluid'discharge opening held normally closed by a separable yoke that isremovably secured in front of said openi n g,substanti ally ashereinal'ter'described.

My invention further consists in certain combinations andsubcombinations, as will be hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 shows an automatic fireextinguisher con structed according to my invention. Fig. 2 shows amodified form of the same, and Fig. 3 shows the parts of myfire-extinguisher in detail.

Referring to Figs. 1 and 3, A is the screwthreaded body of theextinguishing device, having an outlet, a, and arms B B, to which isrigidly attached the deflector or spreader O. Beneath the spreader O arehooks E E, secured thereto in any suitable manner; but the bodyA, armsBB, spreader-O, and hooksEEarepreferably cast of metal to form onecasting. The levers F F are secured together by an easilyfusiblesolder,and theirhooked portions arcinterlocked with the hooks E E, and securedin place by a cross-bar, G, which rests upon shoulders upon the hooks FF, and is slotted to extend by the interlocked hooks E E and F F, andthereby to preventlateral displacement of these parts. By thisarrangement of the interlocking of the movable parts of an extinguishingdevice in front of its outlet the cross-bar rests upon parts that aredetachable, in contradistinction to being movable, and less liable tofail to operate, while it is in such relation to the interlocking booksas to lock them together until they are released by heat. By this doubleuse of the cross-bar the accidental opening of the device is prevented,and the consequent accidental water damage common in other forms isavoided. The employment of hooks interlocked in place of pivoted armsgives additional security, as they are less liable to become inoperativeby corrosion or by oil and lint accumulating around them. In my form ofextinguisher the hooks are made of non-corrosive metal, and the movableparts,

ICC

when tinned with solder where they touch each other, can be used, andwill be operative in places where acid fumes are present and other formsof extinguishers would become inoperative. When desired to make thisform of extinguisher more sensitive to heat, the portions of the leversF F which form the separable yoke may be narrow strips or-wires, inplace of the wider levers shown. The valve m, of brass faced with lead,and having an adjustable stem, D, is pressed against the outlet at, and,passing through a hole in the bottom of the spreader O, rests upon thecross-bar G, and is there adjusted to close the outlet n water-tight.The valve-stem may be made adjustable by having a screw-threaded portiontapped into the valve portion at t", and be provided with a square placeat e, so that it may be turned with a wrench or pinchers.

In Fig. 2 the spreader G is shown as movable with the valve m, and itsstem D is adjustable by having a screw-threaded portion running in thecross-bar G, which is tapped to to receive it. A bar, '0, having a holetherethrough to guide the stem D, is shown. The spreader O is slotted,so as to extend by the arms B B, and to be guided in its descent bythem. The guiding of the valve stem D through the bar 0 and of thespreader O by the arms 13 B prevents the spreader from becoming turned,so as to get wedged in a manner to defeatvits proper operation, as sometimes occurs in those forms heretofore used. The levers F F, with theirhooked portions, and with the necessary shoulders to support thecross-bar G, may be struck out of sheetbrass and secured together toform a separable yoke by winding with a combustible cord, by rings ofeasily-fused metal slipped over their ends,or by being sweated togetherby means of an easily-fusible solder that will become ruptured or fusedby the action of an incipient fire, preferably in the last-named manner.

The operation of the device is as follows: The heat of a fire actingupon the separable yoke causes it to break apart under the strain whichexists when the stem D is pressing between the outlet at and theyielding crossbar G, and it falls, together with the cross-bar Gr,allowing the outlet to become open and discharge the extinguishingfluidagainst. the spreader C, which spreads it over the threatened areabeneath and above in a well-known manner. The valve m may be held toits'place by a screw passing through the cross-bar G,or a nut pressedagainst the cross-bar G, the said valve m and screw being in suchrelation as that the screw will be detached from the valvepiece so that,if desired, the valve m and said in front of said outlet, and a valveheld to normally close said outlet by a crossbar resting upon aseparable yoke and interlocking with said yoke,and with thesupporting-hooks E E, substantially as described.

2. The hooks E E and F F, located in front of the outlet of thesprinkler and held locked together by the cross-bar G until acted uponby heat.

JAMES BUEL.

Witnesses:

W. N. RUSSELL, J. FREDK. BUEL.

